Author: noiifreddy

No One Is Illegal Fredericton calls on Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Ahmed Hussen to support the granting of permanent residency to Mohamed Amine Maazaoui. Mohamed is currently in sanctuary at a Shediac Bay Church.

Andrea Bear Nicholas on The Role of Colonial Artists in the Dispossession and Displacement of the Maliseet, 1790s-1850s

Thursday, May 4 at 7pm

Conserver House, 180 Saint John St., Fredericton

Andrea Bear Nicholas is a professor emeritus and the former endowed chair of Native Studies at St. Thomas University. She is an advocate for the Maliseet language and coordinates an Adult Immersion Program in the Maliseet First Nation at St. Mary’s ​First Nation. Andrea has published on various topics including treaties, language, education, women’s issues and Maliseet history.

Andrea was recently awarded the 2016 Canadian Studies Network Prize for the Best Article Published in the Journal of Canadian Studies. The article, “The Role of Colonial Artists in the Dispossession and Displacement of the Maliseet: 1790’s-1850’s,” can be read here: https://muse.jhu.edu/journal/330

​​Presented by No One Is Illegal Fredericton as part of the 2017 Mayworks Festival.

No One Is Illegal Fredericton would like to invite anyone interested in supporting the efforts of sanctuary city in Fredericton to the Borderless Solidarities Workshop on Saturday, May 6 from 10am to 3:30pm at the Fredericton Public Library (12 Carleton St). This is an important workshop that will gather together key community organizers, activists and service providers to discuss how to make Fredericton a sanctuary city. The workshop is presented in partnership with the Fredericton Public Library as part of 2017 Mayworks Festival.

Please help us in planning by confirming your attendance at noiifredericton@gmail.com. Please feel free to extend this invitation to interested colleagues. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

At least 14 people (9 civilians and 5 soldiers) were killed in the U.S. missile strikes on the Shayrat Military Airbase in Syria on April 6, 2017. This unilateral action taken by the U.S. is a blatant act of imperialist aggression and an egregious violation of international law, which cannot be justified. The strike, authorized by U.S. President Donald Trump, was linked to a chemical weapons attack in the town of Khan Sheikun that reportedly killed as many as 100 people on April 4. There is no conclusive proof who is behind this attack.

U.S. attacks on Syria have already killed scores of civilians, including children. For example, the war against the Islamic State waged by the U.S.-led coalition, under Obama, carried out three massacres in Syria in July 2016.

The Pentagon says it is considering further military action against Syria. U.S. military troops in Syria now number over 1,000.

The U.S. attack further escalates the war in Syria and in the larger region while also increasing the possibility of military confrontation between nuclear weapons powers. Russia and Iran are also intervening on the side of the Assad regime in a war in which there are no sides to support.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had previously promised that Canada would not participate in any further military attacks on Syria but is now supporting the illegal U.S. bombing on Syria on April 6.

No One Is Illegal Fredericton calls for a peaceful solution to the war in Syria — one that does not punish Syrians for Assad’s war crimes with more bombs and economic sanctions.

We demand that Canada stop selling weapons to countries that are funding and arming the war in Syria, including cancelling the $15 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia.

We demand that Canada open its borders to all refugees, apply pressure on the U.S. to lift its ban on refugees from certain countries and lift the cap on private sponsorship of Syrian refugees.

In the interests of human dignity for all people, we affirm our support for an access without fear policy in the City of Fredericton, so that Fredericton can count itself among the growing list of Canadian cities that are sanctuary cities: Toronto, Hamilton, London, Vancouver, and Montreal which are likely to be joined soon by Ottawa, Saskatoon, Regina, and Winnipeg.

A sanctuary city is a place where all residents, including those with uncertain or no immigration status, have full rights to city-administered services without fear, also known as “access without fear.”

As part of a sanctuary city policy, we ask that our city not use municipal funds or resources to enforce federal immigration laws. Immigration enforcement is under federal jurisdiction, and there is no need for municipal staff to perform or assist immigration enforcement activities. We call on city employees to refrain from providing information on any resident’s personal status to federal immigration enforcement agencies. We urge that the municipal staff offer city-administered services with no questions asked to any residents who might be at risk of detention or deportation. We ask that the city provide training and revise its policies in an effort to prevent discrimination based on immigration status. Such policies can be set out expressly in law or simply observed in practice. Denying services on account of a person’s country of origin is discriminatory, and is contrary to both the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the provincial human rights law. Discrimination on the basis of immigration status should be considered a violation of these laws.

Globally, there are over 21 million refugees, and over 40 million people internally displaced by natural of human-made disasters, or by industrial projects. In addition, many more people find themselves unable to survive where they are, and are required by economic necessity to seek a better life elsewhere. The recent immigration policy changes in the US will require more cities in other nations to act as sanctuary cities, and Canadian cities must be among them.

Fredericton has already demonstrated its concern for the global refugee crisis by accepting more refugees per capita than any other city in Canada. Many individuals, service providers and social justice and faith-based groups have been working together with pride and love, building the skills and resources for meeting this challenge. Our community is ready to take the next step: status as a sanctuary city.

Endorsed by:

Association of University of New Brunswick Teachers (AUNBT)
Atlantic Human Rights Centre, St. Thomas University
Atlantic Regional Solidarity Network
Canadian Union of Postal Workers Fredericton/Oromocto Local
Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) NB
Cinema Politica Fredericton
Clinic 554
Community Food Smart
Faculty Association of the University of St. Thomas (FAUST)
Fredericton District Labour Council
Fredericton Homeless Shelters Inc.
Fredericton Gender Minorities Group
Fredericton Palestine Solidarity
Fredericton Youth Feminists
Grace House for Fredericton
Human Rights Department, St. Thomas University
Jews for a Just Peace Fredericton
Imprint Youth Association
Raging Grannies of Fredericton
Refugees Welcome Fredericton
Reproductive Justice NB
New Brunswick African Association
New Brunswick Federation of Labour
New Brunswick Media Co-op
New Brunswick Multicultural Council
New Brunswick Refugee Clinic
No One Is Illegal Fredericton
Organizers of the 6th annual Celebration of Faith in Diversity (CFID)
STU Refugee Sponsorship Community Group
Queer’s Allied People Society
Queer East Artist Collective
TransAction NB
United Campus Labour Council
Union of Graduate Student Workers UNB Fredericton & Saint John
Wil-Doo Community Bike Club
Wilmot Church Council

On July 26, 2016, No One Is Illegal Fredericton wrote Ralph Goodale, Minister of Public Safety, to demand an end to immigration detention. Read the letter here. Six months later, on January 15, 2017, Minister Goodale responded. Read his reply here.

On January 18, 2017, No One Is Illegal Fredericton wrote to Fredericton MP Matt DeCourcey reiterating concerns over Canada’s immigration detention system. Read the letter here. DeCourcey responded on March 8, 2017. Read his reply here.

Sixteen people have died in immigration detention since the year 2000 — four of them died in maximum security prisons in Ontario since No One Is Illegal Fredericton wrote our letter to Minister Goodale. The Toronto Immigration Holding Centre and other immigration detention centres are being expanded. The Toronto Starreported on February 23, 2017 that an average of 48 children are held in Canadian immigration detention every year.

On January 29, 2017, a group of Muslims were praying in a mosque at the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre when a gunman opened fire, killing six people and injuring more.

On Saturday, Feb. 4, Fredericton will join actions across the country that will express our grief and solidarity with the victims of this horrific act of violence committed at the Quebec mosque.

We will take a stand for:

(1) More humane immigration and refugee polices in Canada, the U.S. and worldwide. We must demand that the Canadian government remove caps and restrictions on refugees entering the country and scrap the Safe Third Country Agreement and the Designated Country of Origin list, which stops people from seeking asylum in Canada. We must end immigration detention and deportations.

(2) The elimination of all federal legislation that attacks racialized Black and Brown Muslims and refugees, including the Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act and the anti-terror legislation such as Security Certificates and Bill C-51.

(3) No walls and bans against Muslims and refugees on stolen Indigenous lands! We affirm our solidarity with the Wolastoq people on whose lands we reside on.

There will also be a sign and poster-making event on THURSDAY at 6:00pm at the Bibliothèque publique de Fredericton/ Fredericton Public Library (12 Carleton St.). There will be some paint and poles (for a large fabric banner) but please bring all the other materials you will need. We suggest Bristol board, foam boards, wood handles (for the signs), glue, markers, glitter, stickers, etc.